satchel containing his plates, Victor recoiled in the face of Mademoiselle Bontempsâs ebullience.
âWould it be taking advantage if I were to ask you to take a group picture of us?â she cried excitedly.
âWell, I had in fact come to ask your help. You see Iâm looking for models.â
Victor felt perfectly ridiculous, standing there surrounded by a knot of girls decked out in their Sunday best. As for Mademoiselle Bontemps, she resembled an enormous, belligerent parakeet under the green feathers of her huge hat.
âIâm not sure Iâm looking my best,â she cooed, fidgeting.
âYes, yes, you are ravishing; people will think youâre one of the girls. Letâs go down to the lake.â
Iris, very chic in a grey coat with a fur collar, slipped over to him and whispered, âThatâs going a bit far! She looks hideous. Did Godfather send you?â
âCome along, girls, behave nicely. Itâs not every day that an artist takes an interest in us! Berthe, Aspasie, you tall girls stand behind. Iris, stand here in the front beside Henriette and Aglaé. The othersâ¦â
âThatâs not fair; Iâm an inch shorter than them,â muttered Aspasie.
âItâs a pity Ãlisaâs not here!â said Berthe.
âSheâs gone home to her mother,â said Mademoiselle Bontemps, who added in an aggrieved tone to Victor: âThat mother, she has no idea how to behave. She hasnât paid me for this term; if she thinks Iâm just going to overlook itâ¦â
âThe Fourchon girl? Noémi Gerfleurâs daughter?â asked Victor innocently.
âSo you solved the enigma of the flowery name; what perspicacity, Monsieur Legris! Girls, girls, calm down, stay in your places. Iâll leave you to your work, Monsieur Legris.â
Victor set up his camera, adjusted the pose of the girls and disappeared under a black cloth. There were suppressed giggles, elbowing and mutterings of, âHow long must we stand like statues?â
When heâd finished, the girls scattered, chased by a furious Mademoiselle Bontemps, clutching her plumed hat with one hand. Iris came over to Victor.
âYou didnât say anything to Godfather?â
âNot a wordâ¦How was Ãlisa dressed when she went to meet her lover; what colour were her clothes?â
âWhy?â¦Oh, I see, my godfather has asked you to keep an eye on the people I associate with andâ¦â
âYouâre on the wrong track, Mademoiselle Iris; be kind â enlighten me.â
She looked at him quizzically.
âYouâre hiding something, but Iâll find out what it is eventually,â she murmured. âÃlisa was wearing a red dress and coat, thatâs why I lent her my red shoes. It was a joke â her good friend Gaston was taking her dancing at Le Moulin-Rouge; itâs easy for him to get in â he works there. Is it true, what they say about the naturalist quadrille?â
âWhat do they say?â
âThat the dancers show their petticoats and their drawers.â
âIf the posters are to be believed, yes itâs true.â
âI would give anything to see that!â
âI very much doubt that yourâ¦ahâ¦godfather would agree to that.â
âWe wouldnât have to tell him if you agreed to chaperone me. You can keep a secret canât you, Monsieur Legris?â she said in an icy tone.
Victor was saved by the return of Mademoiselle Bontemps, who had gathered her lost flock. It was a struggle to extricate himself; the young ladies, egged on by their headmistress, insisted on his trying a sensational blend of tea accompanied by apple strudel. As he left, he could not help glancing at Iris anxiously. Was Kenji taking his responsibilities towards the young girl seriously?
*
Victor collapsed exhausted in a bistro on Avenue Victor-Hugo. Restored by a glass of vermouth, he laughed at
Maggie Brendan
Barbara O'Connor
Jan Washburn
Terri Blackstock
Norah Simone
Barry Kemp
G.P. Taylor
Alan Cumyn
Linda Barnes
Lisa Jackson